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Monday, June 29, 2009

Red Cooked Pork - Girl with Red Ribbon - Ruby Tuesday

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...We call her "The Girl with Red Ribbons" and thought she was a fit subject for the Work of the Poet: Ruby Tuesday meme. She was a lovely child. The photograph was taken in an outdoor cafe in the Muslim quarter of Xi'an China. The call to prayer had interrupted her meal and she was fascinated by the stream of believers pouring into the mosque compound. Though the area was a Muslim enclave, the restaurants outside the mosque served an incredible array of food, including pork. Obviously, not all the merchants and visitors were Muslim, so it was only mildly surprising that red cooked pork was a popular item in the cafes. Today's recipe is for an incredibly good version of red cooked pork. When this is made with pork belly or not-to-lean pork ribs you have the makings of an unbelievably easy feast. My friends and teachers, Lily, at Lily's Wai Sek Hong, and Ning, at Heart and Hearth have wonderfully authentic recipes for this great entree. Here's my westernized version of the classic.

Directions:1) Melt sugar in vegetable in a medium pot over medium high heat. Cook, stirring, until sugar is slightly brown, about 3 minutes. Add pork cubes to pan and cook in caramelized sugar until brown on all sides, about 8 minutes. 2) Place garlic, star anise, dark soy sauce, rice wine and broth in pot. Simmer, covered, over low heat for about 40 minutes, stirring occasionally. Transfer meat to a bowl and tent with foil. Boil sauce to reduce by half. Dissolve cornstarch in water and add to pan. Stir until sauce comes to a boil and begins to thicken. Return meat to pan. Toss in sauce until all surfaces are coated. Transfer to a platter, garnish with scallions and serve hot. Yield: 4 servings.

Thank you so much for the reference :) Yours is quite authentic because you added star anise. I would not put in too much of that spice because my kids don't like it. I also do not reduce the sauce because my kids like to slather their rice with it. But then, red-cooked pork is a flexible recipe... :)

This sounds delicious and will satisfy a craving we've been having for something different. Thanks so much Mary for your comments at GrannyMountain today. I wanted to share the saving aspects of living green. Everyone dreads the summer bills and they don't have to.

Happy RT, Mary! This indeed is a pretty girl with the red ribbon.I have been to Xi'an and saw your Terra Cotta Warriors and Horses. It was magnificant! Isn't it something that it was found! A part of those warriors and the horses are on exhibition here in Houston, Texas, this summer. Since we saw even more of them in China we won't be going down into Houston this time...

As soon as I read the title, I thought, "oh I hope this is a recipe!" Thank you! The photos are lovely and the recipe mouth-watering. Maybe tomorrow evening...and if people ask, star anise is available at any Asian grocery store.

I love the little girl!I love photographing children but I'm always concerned about posting photos of children i don't know.Does anybody know the legality of this? It's such a pity because children make the BEST SUBJECTS! :D

This looks good enough to run out and eat right now... if only I had some. Great post and I will give your site to my mom... she cooks more than I do and she loves to read cookbooks... like novels! Thanks for stopping by.

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